The sleep cycle involves a series of transitional states that repeat themselves throughout the hours that youre sleeping.
Hypnopompichallucinations typically occur as youre waking up.
This article explains how people may experience these sleep-related hallucinations and some of the behaviors seen with them.
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It explains medical conditions that may make these episodes more likely.
You then return to stage 2, repeat the cycle, and eventually reach REM sleep.
It also is unique in some way to each person, a feature that specialists refer to assleep architecture.
Symptoms
When people report hallucinations, they often describe visual experiences.
Other hallucinations involve auditory experiences, meaning that a person hears things instead.
In some cases, the hallucination may feel like a sense of falling or other movement.
Some people may jump up in bed or engage in behaviors likesleepwalkingand sleep talking.
Research shows that nearly 70% of adults sleep talk at some point in their lives.
Causes
Hallucinations may simply represent the persistence of dream imagery into wakefulness.
Narcolepsy often has symptoms and features similar to those found in psychiatric disorders.
In some cases this leads to a misdiagnosis of the condition.
Be sure to speak to your healthcare provider about your specific symptoms to ensure an accurate diagnosis and treatment.
Similar Conditions and Hallucinations
Conditions similar to Parkinsons disease may lead to hallucinations, too.
One such condition is known as Charles Bonnet Syndrome.
These vivid episodes are similar to those also seen withepilepsy.
Medications
Both visual and hearing-related hallucinations may be possible due to medication use.
Thats especially true with drug interactions that occur when more than one drug is in use.
Be sure to let all of your providers know about any medications or supplements you are taking.
For instance, heavy use of stimulants such as cocaine and methamphetamine can cause hallucinations.
When to Seek Help
Hallucinations, especially the hypnagogic and hypnopompic types, are usually harmless.
Thats especially true if you feel that stress or anxiety are contributing to the problem.
Asleep specialistcan help if your hallucinations seem to be related to disruptions in your sleep patterns.
Summary
Its quite common to experience brief hallucinations when youre falling asleep, called hypnagogic hallucinations.
These episodes also may occur when youre waking up and are referred to as hypnopompic hallucinations.
They can, however, be a sign of a more serious condition.
Frequently Asked Questions
There are similarities, but they are not entirely identical.
This may improve the understanding of these states and lead to potential sleep disorder treatments.
Rapid eye movement (REM) sleep is the deep stage of the sleep cycle in which dreams occur.
Much of it occurs during the last one-third of a night’s sleep.
A sleep study can help to identify these patterns and disruptions.
It depends on your unique sleep patterns.
Typically, the first stage of sleep lasts five to 10 minutes.
Stage 2 lasts about 20 minutes.
These sleep cycles will repeat four or five times during the night.
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